Liar Game
by Lily of the Shadow
Summary: The mentally ill are prime targets for identity theft. When his mother's identity is stolen, Spencer has to clear the unexpected debt. To pay it off, he enters something called the Liar Game.
1. Round One

This story somewhat ignored the season finale of Criminal Minds, sorry! But I couldn't work with that. So things have continued as normal. Forgive any errors, I've been out of the fanfiction game for quite a while.

You may notice in later chapters that some text is replaced with boxes indicitave of broken unicode. This would be because your computer is not set up to support Japanese characters. Ask and I can explain how to fix it; otherwise, Google is your friend.

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or the Liar Game.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Mr. Reid, but there is nothing we can do in this case."

Spencer knew that arguing would get him nowhere. He thanked the collector for her time, and hung up. He sighed deeply and rested his head on his palms. He stared at the desk between his fingers, cluttered with a pile of credit card bills and loan payment notices worth nearly a half a million dollars, all in his mother's name.

He had just gotten off the phone with the fourth company that day, trying to clear the sudden, overwhelming influx of debt his mother had mysteriously acquired. Quite obviously, none of it was hers, but the bills were in her name, nonetheless.

Spencer has seen his share of identify theft cases, but none had quite hit like this one. His own mother! And he was the one footing her bills, since she was in the hospital. Even on the BAU's salary, it was an exorbitant amount of money. And the credit card companies could do nothing!

He began to list ways of seeking legal help with the issue. His laptop was unburied and opened. He swat a few more stray papers away as he began to do some Internet research on the subject. There had to be a way out, he just didn't know where it was quite yet.

--

"Mr. Reid, I understand you are in a rather particular situation."

Spencer looked up from his laptop. The pretty young waitress has a somewhat unsettling smile on her face as she poured his coffee. "You need money, and fast, don't you?"

"It's a personal matter," Reid protested. Her smile didn't change.

"I know where you can earn money, tax free and under the table. A lot of it. A million dollars worth, if you need."

Spencer straightened up. It didn't sound legal.

"Once you agree to the contract, it's perfectly legal," the woman said, as if reading his mind. "Nobody gets hurt, and you simply come out a little bit richer or poorer than you first were. What have you got to lose?"

"What are you talking about?" Spencer asked with a frown. The woman pulled a glossy black envelope out of her apron. She handed it to Spencer.

"If you're interested, watch the DVD. It explains everything." Spencer looked down at the envelope. It was sealed with wax, and had white lettering in the bottom corner: LGT Secretariat. He flipped it over. The front had white embossing; "Dr. Spencer Reid"

He looked up, eyes wide, but the waitress was gone. He waited for almost an hour for her to return, but she didn't. Finally, he stood up, threw some bills down for his coffee, and left.

Once home, he opened the letter. The enclosed card was equally glossy, embellished with white designs and lettering. It outlined a game that Spencer immediately dismissed as absurd, disgusting, and definitely illegal, no matter what the "contract" says.

After deciding against participating, he glanced at the Mini-DVD attached. It was useless, he thought. He put the envelope back together and filed it in a drawer.

It still left the problem of how the waitress knew him, what his troubles were, and had an invitation to this game just waiting on hand for him.

He didn't sleep well that night.

--

"You don't look too well," JJ was the first to express concern for their youngest teammate. She was showing a few months pregnant, but had not shown any signs of quitting. Despite that, her mothering had increased a hundredfold. She lay a hand on Spencer's forehead.

"I didn't sleep well last night," Spencer admitted. "There was... there have been some problems with my mother's finances," he said, only withholding half the information. "I've been concerning myself with that."

"Do you need a lawyer?" Emily Prentiss asked, furrowing her brow.

Spencer looked at her. "I might. I think she's a victim of identity theft," he said. "I have at least a dozen credit card bills at home that she could never have signed up for."

"I know someone," Emily said, "I could get you his number."

"I appreciate it," Spencer said. Emily nodded and went to go look up her friend, while Aaron arrived and set everyone to work.

--

Spencer opened the door and frowned. There was a rather large pile of envelopes in front of the mail slot. He picked them up. More bills?

His frown deepened. More bills.

His eyes darted towards the file cabinet with the black envelope hidden deep inside. He pushed the thought out of his mind, and began going through the bills. He had the number for Emily's lawyer, and resolved to call the next morning.

He slept only slightly better.

--

Spencer woke up early, intending to get coffee on the way to work. He dressed, gathered everything he needed, and took his keys off his key rack. He opened the front door and stopped.

At his feet was a small, black paper covered box. On top, a small note on glossy black card stock: "Do not open unless you intend to play the Liar Game."

Spencer's eyebrows furrowed as he examined the box. After a moment, he dragged it into his front hall.

His mind was spinning. He was confidant that he could beat this game, if he joined. But it would involve the theft of a million dollars, something that went against everything his was.

But the money wasn't even theirs. It belonged to the game.

Even so, it had to be returned to the.. Secretariat? at the end of the game, whether you had acquired the money from your opponent or not. If he lost...

He would be in further debt... One million dollars further into debt.

He had no doubt that he could win, unless his opponent was specially selected to be able to match his mind.

For almost an hour, he stood in front of the box, staring at it—through it—debating and arguing every pro and con to the game. One million dollars would cover the debt his mother's identity had accumulated, albeit with little to spare... But it could also break Spencer entirely if he lost.

If he won, someone else, somewhere else, would be one million dollars in debt. Should he be responsible for that?

They knew what they were getting in to. They agreed to the game, didn't they? They knew the risks just as he did.

Spencer's cell phone rang. He jumped, startled. He fumbled in his pockets for it.

"Reid," he spoke into the mouthpeice.

"Reid, where are you? You're a half an hour late. Is everything okay?" Aaron Hotchner's voice came through the receiver. Spencer breathed a sigh of relief.

"Everthing's fine," he said. "I'm just running a little late. I'll be in shortly," he said, stepping over the box and closing his door behind himself.

--

Returning home that night was a sharp jolt of reality. There were even more bills just inside his mail slot, fallen on top of the simple black box. He picked it up, ignoring the bills, and dropped it on his coffee table. It was heavy. The package was about 5 inches deep, by 12 inches wide and 25 inches long. He opened the box. Inside were 10,000-dollar bricks of crisp 50-dollar bills.

He took a shaky breath. He was officially agreeing to this game. He was going to do this.

He was going to participate in The Liar Game.


	2. The Genius Swindler

This chapter contains some Japanese that might not be displayed on some computers. This is not entirely a loss, unless you speak/read Japanese and wish to know exactly what is being said. Conversations are held in the language they are written in. You are not missing any crucial information if you cannot read Japanese; it is mostly there because I need the practice, and because Liar Game is originally Japanese. Just enjoy looking at the pretty symbols!

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or Liar Game (ライアーゲーム). I sincerely hope I do justice to the characters that Mr. Gubler and Matsuda-san play so brilliantly.

* * *

日本 – 東京

Shinnichi Akiyama had been called a "Genius Swindler" by the press. That was neither a lie, nor an exaggeration, but Shinnichi was no longer involved in criminal activity.

"Akiyama-san. I believe you would want this," a woman held out a file folder. Shinnichi took the folder and opened it. He frowned as he examined the list. It was a list of names, headed by a title.

No longer involved, that is, except for one thing. Eri was his only link to the game he sought to end.

"Liar Game participants?" Shinnichi looked at the woman. "American names," he said.

"Yes," the woman replied. Shinnichi looked though the list again.

"I know this name," he tapped absently at the page. "Spencer Reid."

"Yes," Eri nodded, hands delicately folded in front of her.

"He is a criminal profiler, isn't he?" Shinnichi had heard the name while he was studying Psychology. He knew what the man did for a living, because that is what he wanted to do himself. In a way, he suceeded. He would be curious to meet the man who had inspired him. At the same time, he would have to be incredibly careful.

"Yes," Eri replied with a short nod.

"How is my English?" Shinnichi asked. Eri raised a delicate eyebrow.

"Fine," she responded. Shinnichi nodded.

"Good. May I keep these?"

"Yes," she said.

--

Two people stood in a small apartment. Shinnichi was crouched in front of a fish tank, sprinkling flakes on top of the water. The woman behind him was pouting rather cutely.

"秋山さん! どこへ行きますか?" she half-demanded.

"アメリカ。" Shinnichi stood up and dusted his hands off. He recapped the fish food bottle and set it on top of the tank. He glanced over his shoulder.

"アメリカ？どうしてですか！" the woman looked surprised. Of course, many things surprised Kanzaki Nao, but this was a real surprise—she was not expecting her guardian angel to be going anywhere.

"ライアーゲーム。" Shinnichi took another look around the apartment. Nao's eyes grew wide. She was intimately familiar with the Liar Game, having been a player-come-pawn herself.

"でも！ライアーゲームは終わりましたよ！" She grabbed his arm as he went to walk past her.

"ううん。終わりない。アメリカに行った。" Shinnichi gently prised her fingers off of his arms. He reached for the set of keys. "お願いします。" He set them in her hand and hefted a duffel bag over his shoulder.

"秋山さん！" she pleaded. "行ってないで下さい！　秋山さん！" Nao followed him out the apartment and down the stairs. He didn't turn back. He waved a hand over his shoulder as he slid into a taxi.

"_深一 くん__！_" Nao watched the taxi pull away. She bit her lip, clutching the keys tightly in her hand. She looked down at them, then realized that they had left the apartment unlocked. "あっ！" She ran back upstairs.

Once there, she stood in the middle of the room. She dropped onto the couch. She glanced out the window at her former teacher's house, reminiscing.

The apartment has originally been rented to spy on him, since he had so easily tricked her out of the hundred-million Yen she had received from the first round of the Liar Game only a year before. She was still just as stupidly honest as she was back then, which might account for why Shinnichi had stayed with her for so long, carefully watching over her from his own small apartment as she went about her daily business.

She decided that it was probably a good time to return to her own apartment. She carefully locked up and left the building.

--

Spencer's mail slot clicked. He heard the faint sound of a letter hitting the floor. He stood up and walked slowly towards the entry hall.

On the floor was a single, glossy black envelope.

White lettering spelled out "Opponent" on the front. He picked it up, examining it from all angles.

Spencer read softly out loud. "Your opponent in this game is: Kevin Curnow."


	3. Liar Game Veteran

Liar Game: About the Drama  
_ Liar Game was described by a viewer on one forum as being "far from perfect: It should have been shorter and there were too many scenes of guys with strange haircuts laughing manically." (Was he talking about Mushroom-head and Mini-Mushroom??)  
As with many Japanese _Doramas_, it is somewhat over exaggerated, with (mostly) mediocre acting and many bizarre camera angles and effects. However, the premise of the Liar Game is intriguing. You can watch the three-hour finale and understand almost the entire show, but I like Shinnichi and Nao's characters a lot, and I enjoyed watching them muddle through and figure the Liar Game out. I wanted to do more with them. Hence, this crossover._

-

I apologize for the short chapter, but I wanted to give you something to hold you over until next time.

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or Liar Game. They belong to... um... other people.

* * *

_Kevin Curnow_.

He stared for a long time at the name, letting it sink in. He finally sat down at his computer to begin researching his opponent.

Kevin Curnow had been in and out of prison, and was currently wanted in any case. Spencer felt a little bit better about indebting him—he would be imprisoned anyway, as soon as he was found.

Spencer began to plan. He would need resources to find him, if the police were still looking for him. He knew of one place he could get that information discreetly: Garcia.

Spencer decided that he would approach her the next day, in the morning. He'd bring her some sort of pastry as a sacrificial offering. Maybe a whole cake... This was important.

--

A young man stepped off the plane and scrutinized the airport. He let out a small snort of disbelief, then proceeded to the exit gates—he had nothing but his carry-on bag with him. He sped through customs and made sure his visa was in order. Finally, he stepped foot outside on proper American concrete.

He hailed a cab and handed the driver an address, then sat back and watched the city roll by.

Shinnichi Akiyama pulled out the list of participants and looked for Spencer Reid's name. His opponent appeared to be someone by the name of Kevin Curnow. Shinnichi wondered why they would match someone like Dr. Reid against a nobody.

Long, dark hair fell into his eyes, obscuring his vision, but not his observation, as he looked back out the window. The cab pulled in front of a modest home. He got out, paid the cab driver, and approached the front door with no sign of trepidation whatsoever.

He knocked.

--

Spencer jumped. He had been planning, when a knock sounded on the door. He quickly filed away the plans and notes he had made, then went to open the door.

A young man stood in front of him, a small duffel bag slung over his shoulder.

"Spencer Reid?" the man asked. He nodded.

"Yes, can I help you?" Reid answered guardedly.

"Probably not, but I might be able to help you," the boy replied. "The Liar Game has already started, hasn't it?"

"What do you know about the Liar Game?" Spencer asked, stepping outside to look around.

"What do _you_ know?" the man challenged. "A lot less than I do, I'm sure. I will help you, but I have a request."

"How do I know you're not Kevin Curnow, trying to get a jump on me?" Reid asked logically. The man laughed humorlessly.

"Do I look like a Kevin Curnow?" He shook his head with a smirk. Spencer had considered that his Japanese accent did not fit with the name, of course, but he had to ask.

He continued: "My name is Shinnichi Akiyama. I played until the third round of the Liar Game in Japan, before one of the financiers had a change of heart and stopped funding the game." He leaned against one of the posts on the small porch. "I was not surprised to hear that the Secretariat moved his operation to America. There are plenty of greedy people in America to take advantage of."

Reid was not sure how to react to the insult against his countrymen, so he pursued the other obvious avenue of questioning: "You've played before?"

"Yes," Shinnichi said simply, truthfully.

"How did the game turn out?" Reid asked, almost—but not quite—fearing the answer. Surely, he could not have come tot he United States if he was a million dollars in debt.

"I was lured into the game by a police officer's manipulations," Shinnichi explained casually. "The girl who requested my help won the first round, though she gave the sum of her hundred-million yen prize money to the loser of the game to keep him out of debt."

"You got her all one-hundred million yen? How?" Spencer asked, slightly awed.

"It was simple. The man was of weak will, and was easy to manipulate. However, giving him the prize money left her unable to buy out of the second round, so she continued on."

Spencer frowned. A second round? You had to buy out of it? Maybe he made a mistake in agreeing. He couldn't simply pay off the debt, could he?

"She lost the second round without debt," Shinnichi continued, "but entered the Resurrection Round in attempt to save _me_ from going on to the Third round."

"I see," Spencer nodded, brows furrowed. "You did go to the third round, though?"

He took a breath. "I wanted to continue," he said. "For reasons of my own, I have to continue on. I need to find out who is at the top. But Liar Game Japan didn't extend past the third level. I received a tip from a friend who informed me that there was another game starting in the United States. I recognized your name on the list he gave me of participants, and decided that you would be an appropriate partner. You work with the government, correct? Criminal profiling."

"...That is correct," Reid said. He was wary, but there was no sign that he shouldn't trust Shinnichi's words; except of course for the fact that he was a stranger, standing on his porch uninvited, with seemingly intimate knowledge of an illegal, high-stakes _game. _

"Come inside," he offered after a long moment, stepping aside to let the man in.

"ども," the man bowed slightly as he stepped in. He toed off his shoes and padded into the living room.


End file.
